Coat hanger



April 1950 c. E. MELCHER 2,504,562

COAT HANGER Filed April 17. 1947 C1 50 :5 ME: 6/152.

IN VE N 70? ATTORNEYS Patented Apr. 18, 195i.)

UNITED STATES PTENT OFFICE COAT HANGER Cleo E. Melcher, Wichita, Kans.

Application April 17, 1947, Serial No. 744,710

7 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in coat hangers.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a coat hanger by which a, coat may be hung in a naturally draped manner without danger of creasing the same and in a manner to provide an effective support throughout the fol. breadth of the shoulder portions of the coat.

A further object is to provide a coat hanger which is adjustable to correspond with the slope and the breadth of the shoulders of the owner of a coat to be hung thereon, whereby a coat tailored to fit the wearer will be carried by the hanger in an unstressed, fully supported manner.

A further object is to provide a coat hanger which is adjustable as to width and to slope, with a neck or central portion of a size and shape to form a bearing or support engageable by the collar of a coat in a manner to hold the collar portion of the coat in a natural unstressed position.

A further object is to provide a coat hanger which is adjustable to accommodate different shoulder slopes and widths, with a portion operating in all adjustments thereof to support and suspend the skirt or trousers of a suit within the outline of the coat carried by the hanger and in a manner to preserve the crease of the garment.

Other objects will be apparent from the following specification.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a view of the device in side elevation.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the device.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary enlarged sectional view taken on line 33 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary enlarged detail sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary side elevational view of a modified embodiment of the invention.

Referring to the drawing which illustrates the preferred embodiment of the invention, the numeral it designates a central portion or neck member which is preferably elongated vertically and. is of oval shape in cross-section. The neck portion Ii! may be formed of any suitable material, either solid or hollow, such as wood, metal or plastic, and has secured thereto an upwardly projecting hook member l2, by means of which the hanger may be suspended from. a support in a manner well understood in the art. The neck member Ill has a plurality of series of vertically spaced openings l4 therein adapted to receive detachable securing members i 6 passing through openings in the yoke portions l8 of elongated guide members 26. The guide members pref erably extend at an angle to each other in both vertical and horizontal planes, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, in an angularly, downwardly and forwardly extending direction from the central or neck portion Ill. The major transverse axis of the neck portion Ill extends in a direction lengthwise of the guides 20, as shown in Fig. 2. The yokes iii are so formed as to have sufiicient clearance from the neck portion embraced thereby to accommodate a substantial range of vertical pivotal movement of the guides 20. The securing members It may constitute screws which engage in tapped bores M in the neck portion and adapted to clamp the ends of the yoke securely and frictionally against the neck member It to hold the guides 20 in any selected angular adjustment vertically.

Shoulder portions 22 are provided with elongated shanks 24 of a size and shape to fit snugly and slidabiy within the guides 20. Any suitable locking means, such as set screws 26, may be carried by the guides 20 to engage the shanks 24 for the purpose of holding the same in selected longitudinal adjustment in the guides 29. The shoulder portions 22 are preferably laterally enlarged, as best seen in Fig. 2, and are provided with convex uppermost surfaces to provide a large area of support for the garment at its shoulder portions. As illustrated in Fig. l, the shoulder portions preferably extend at an angle relative to the shanks 24 and the guide 2!] to further in sure supporting engagement thereof at the shoulder portions of a garment. It is necessary to prevent rotation of the shanks 24 in the guides 29 in order that the top convex supporting surface of the shoulder elements 22 may be positioned properly, and, in cases where the guides and the shanks 24 are of circular cross-section, the shanks 24 may be longitudinally slotted at 28 to receive the inner end of the set screws 26 for the purpose of preventing rotation. The telescopic parts Zll and 24 may be formed of non-circular crosssection, however, if desired, and in such instances the cross-sectional shape of the parts will prevent turning of the shoulder portion and the shanks. As best seen in Figs. 1 and 2, a crossseotional dimension of the tubular guides 20 insures a substantial area of support of a garment and avoids the formation of creases at the shoulders of the garment. Likewise the cross sectional area of the neck member It! is substantially greater than the cross-sectional area of the guides 26, thereby providing a large area of gradually curved bearing surface for engagetions 22 and accommodate the gripping of the' cuff or lower leg portion of a pair oi trousers or the Waist band of a skirt, whereby such garment may be suspended freely in a manner which The-wires 3.2 are- .will avoid creasing thereof. sumciently flexible to facilitate easy insertion of the garment therebetween when the fittings 34 have been slid past the. free end of one of the Wires for. the purposeof permittingthe: insertion of the garment between the-wires.

It will be apparent.thatqthisrcoat hangerimay be adjusted accurately to: correspond; to ;the;slop e of: theshoulders ofjan. individual, and elongated to correspond :to thebreadth of the shoulders of an individual, by adjusting-the vertical angle of the guides 20 and anchoring them inthe desired position'by the-securing member H5, and .byextending theshanks 24= of the shoulder members longitudinally relative to the guide membersrand then clamping them in that positionzby manipulation' of theset screws 26; Thusa full breadth natural support of a coat. or other: garment is provided, permitting the garment to hang in a naturally draped manner-1 corresponding to the manner in which the coatifltspthe. wearer. No part of thecoat is.stressed,anditissupported for its full. breadth, from shoulder portion to shoulder portion. Theparts 22 affordsupport for thegarment at the upper. endsofthe sleeves thereof in addition. toithe support afiorded along the shoulder portions of the, coatbetween. said uppersleeve portion and. thecollar portion. of the garment... The central or co1lar,-portion of thegarment isheld in anatural .positlonbythe enlarged: central. neck portionand.is.,prevented from. being creased, or otherwise. unnaturally draped. The adjustmentforangle and for width of the hanger isaccommodatedbythe. arrangement otthewiresSZ which slide. freelyrelative to one. another incident to. such adjustments. Thus bythis device it is possible .to provide for the natural draping and, hanging of agarment in a manner to. avoid any creasing, ,straining, stressing or stretching of the parts. as is ,charac: teristic. ofconventional hangers which do not provide.v such adjustments and which do not provide aneck supportnor a shoulder or upper sleeve support as. are provided in the instant device.

A slightlymodified embodiment of the invention is shown in Fig..5'where corresponding parts bear the .same reference numerals. The shoulder portion 22', in this construction is modifiedin its shape, and. contour, still providing, however, the advantages of convex. upper surface and large transverse area which characterize the first'iembodiment. A projection iilisformed integrally with the shoulder portion 22' 'andidepends there from as illustrated... In the form shown; the device may be molded or cast fronrmetal or plastic or formed. in any other suitable manner-as by cutting or shaping. If desired, the member 40 maybe formed from a separate =piece-and rigidly secured or anchored-to the shoulder portion 22".

A similar projection 40 is carried by the opposite shoulder member 22'. The arrangement of the trouser hanger of the device is somewhat altered in this form. Thus, the rearmost part of such a support is here illustrated as formed of telescoping parts, such as a tubular member 42 carried by a projection 46 at one end and a Wire M fitting telescopically therein. In Fig. 5 the front part of the trouser hanger is of the same construction as illustrated in Fig; 2, and; fittings or brackets to hold the front and back parts together are employed in the same manner illustrated in Fig. 2. The telescopic parts 52 and 44 arecarried by their respective mounting projections 40 at opposite sides of the device in any suitable manner. If desired, these parts may have. a pivotal-connection with the supports 40, although in the preferred form they Will be fixedly secured to said projections as by imbedding therein in the case of devices formed by molding or casting. The: flexibility of the. elongated; wire will be sufiicient in most instances tc.accom modate the. angular adjustment of the-arms.- of the hanger: aboutthelr .pivotszl 6-;

Whilerthc preferred embodiments-oi the invention' have been illustrated anddescribedherein; it will be understood that other constructions may be made whichialliwith-in the: scope of the appended claims withoutdeparting fromsthe spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. A coat hanger comprising a neckmember of elliptical transverseconfiguration, a pair; of elongated guides having forked inner endsfitting partially around said. neclzrmember and pivoted thereto, means for clamping.,;said guides inselected an gular relation: to said neck member, said neck member beingv ofgreater cross-sectional .size than said guides and havingitssminortransverse axis positioned transversely relativeto said guides, a pair of shoulder members each havinga shank portion longitudinallyshiftable in. a guide, meansv for locking; saidshank portions. in selected longitudinal adjustment, theiouter end portions of said shoulder menibeisrbeing transversely enlarged, a longitudinally extensible support, means depending fromtthe endsoi said shoulder members for mountingtheends of said support, and a suspending hoolccarried by and projecting upwardly from saidsneckmmember.

2. The construction defined cla.-inrl,.wherein said guides and shoulder sh'anlrs-interiit telescopically and: are" or substantial-cross sectional size.

3. The constructiondefined in claim 1; and means holding said guides and shoulder shanks against relative'rotation.

4. The construction defined in claim 1, wherein. the enlargedendv portions; oi-= said. shoulder members have convex-upper surfacesand extend at an angle to said shanks.

5. The construction defined iii-claim 1, wherein said neck member is vertically; elongated and has a plurality-oi vertical-1y spaced sets of pivot apertures.

6. A coat hangercomprisinggar vertically clone gated central member; avpair of; longitudinally extensible; elongated. arms: pivoted: at their. inner ends to. said central member. and having enlarged outer end portions, said;central.member being of larger horizontal, cross-sectional' area than the cross-sectional area oisaid elongated arms andof oval cross-sectional shape, a" suspension hook carried by said central member, means for ilocke ing said arms in selected angular relation" :tosaid 5 central member, and means for locking said arms in selected longitudinal adjustment.

7;, The construction defijhed in claim 6, wherein a clamping member is cerried by the outer end of each arm, said clamping members being substantially parallel to clump a, garment therebetwfen, and retainers slidably encircling said parallel members to retain'the same in garment clamping position. v

C. E. MELCHER.

1 @9 REFERENCES CITED The followin references are of record in the fileof this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date I 23,786 Geraci June 1, 1909 1,312,043 Nixon Aug. 5, 1919 1,377,836 Kaufer May 10, 1921 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 480,944 Germany Dec. '7, 1926 

